His plan would lock some controversial farmland in the Helvetia area of Washington County and affirm a 2011 decision by Metro to open roughly 2,000 acres near Beaverton and Hillsboro for future development.

The Legislature set up the urban and rural reserves system in 2007 in order to provide more certainty for farmers and developers, but the designations became mired in controversy.

If the Legislature acts, the planning effort could bypass much of the legal scrutiny that has bogged it down since local governments approved it in 2010.

But Clem’s effort is controversial. Washington County, Hillsboro and Metro officials have all said the so-called “land use grand bargain” that Clem is proposing would undermine local control over land use designations.